Pro-life group releases rank list of BC Liberal leadership candidates

A national pro-life group has ranked those in the race for the B.C. Liberal leadership, based off each candidate’s “pro-life principles and policies.”

Ahead of the February vote, group Right Now has released charts and Q and A’s on who they would like to see be voted as the next leader.

Of the candidates, Vancouver-Langara MLA Michael Lee is their top pick.

According to the group’s website, Lee responded to a questionnaire saying he wanted to decrease sex-selective and late-term abortions, and that minors should need parental involvement to get an abortion.

But in a release Wednesday afternoon, Lee clarified his stance on the controversial issue.

“Michael was raised in a Catholic household by a family with strong beliefs,” the release said. “He does not believe in imposing his views on others and would not be introducing legislation.”

The father of three also said that while there should be tools and resources provided to minors to have conversations with their parents about an abortion, “he recognizes this may not fit the circumstances of all young women and that parental involvement should not be mandatory.:

Meanwhile, MLA Sam Sullivan said he’d like to “restore Christianity to a central and positive role in society,” according to Right Now, garnering him a spot as the second most-liked contender.

When asked by the group what sort of provincial pro-life legislation he’d support, Sullivan said: “Reducing Christianity to simple rules that come off as intolerance or lack of sympathy for the complexity of life has deep repercussions that have caused many people to turn away from all of the other contributions Christianity should be making to our society.”

Andrew Wilkinson told the group he is not pro-life, while Kamloops’ Todd Stone and Abbotsford’s Mike de Jong didn’t respond to the “multiple interview requests” and South Surrey candidate Dianne Watts declined to complete the questionnaire.

Right Now’s goal is to nominate and elect pro-life politicians into power across the country, according to its website.

“After being born into one of the only countries in the world with no law on abortion and working full-time in the political pro-life movement that saw little success, we realized it’s time for change,” the group’s website reads.